Root-crop harvesters

ABSTRACT

Guide means disposed between the lifting means and the cleaning and elevating means of a root-crop harvester comprise a pair of independent cleaning and elevating tines which like the lifting arms of the lifting means can be set in motion in relation to the harvester and are spaced the smallest mutual distance apart at their free ends.

United States Patent Sjovall [4 1 Aug. l,' 1972 [54] ROOT-CROP HARVESTERS [5 6] References Cited 72] Inventor: Stig Lennart Sjovall, Kavlinge, UNITED STATES PATENTS Sweden 1,060,968 5/1913 Bocker ..171/76 73 ee: svenska sockerfabriks Akfiebol 1,472,328 10/1923 Deyl ..l7l/ 105 l 1 Malmo, Sweden 3,198,260 8/1965 Gay et al ..171/106 Filed: 1970 Primary Examiner-Antonio F. Guida [21] APPL N05 34,722 Attorney-Beveridge & De Grandi v [57] ABSTRACT Foreign ApPlicafion Priority Data Guide means disposed between the lifting means and 0m. 29 1969 Sweden ..14776/69 the cleaning and elevating means vester comprise a pair of independent cleaning and elevating tines which like the lifting arms of the lifting [52] U.S. Cl. ..l7l/76, l7l/ 101, 171/105 means can be set in motion in relation to the harvester [51] Int. Cl. ..A0ld 25/04 and are spaced the smallest mutual distance apart at [58] Field of Search ..l71/76, 101, 103, 106 their free ends.

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ROOT-CROP HARVESTERS This invention relates to a root-crop harvester comprising firstly lifting means of the kind having lifting arms which are spaced the smallest mutual distance apart at their free ends which are directed rearwardly as viewed in the travelling direction and from which the arms diverge relative to each other and in the travelling direction, secondly cleaning and elevating means rearwardly of the free ends of the lifting arms, and thirdly means for guiding the root-crops from the lifting means to the cleaning and elevating means. In prior-art harvesters of this type the dug-up root-crops are transferred in an unsatisfactory manner to the cleaning and elevating means located rearwardly of the lifting means as viewed in the travelling direction of the harvester. It may be mentioned that to ensure said transfer it has been found necessary to arrange a latticed passageway between the lifting means and the cleaning and elevating means. However, in certain moist and wet harvesting conditions the latticed passage could not prevent the root-crops from being transferred together with a continuous strand of soil to the cleaning and elevating means, thereby rendering the work thereof difficult and even impossible. To ensure satisfactory operation of the cleaning and elevating means and to provide a rootcrop harvester that delivers acceptably cleaned rootcrOps, the greater amount of the soil adhering to the root-crops shall be discharged in the passageway between the lifting means and the cleaning and elevating means. This is made possible by the invention in that the guide means comprises a pair of independent cleaning and elevating tines which, like the lifting arms can be set in motion relative to the harvester and which are connected to a drive and also are spaced the smallest mutual distance apart at their ends, said tines diverging in the same direction as the lifting arms. Also under difficult weather conditions these tines are able to disintegrate the strand of soil accompanying the dugup root-crops and to transfer to the cleaning and elevating means root-crops suited for supplementary cleaning.

These features of and the advantages gained by the invention will become apparent from the following description in which reference is made to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the inventive arrangement and the adjoining parts of a beet harvester;

FIG. 2 is a section on line II-ll in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a section on line III-III in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a section on line lV-IV in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a section on line V-V in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a section on line Vl--VI in FIG. 2.

The beet harvester (not shown) has a drivers cabin and an internal combustion engine for the propulsion of the harvester and for driving the implements of the harvester over suitable transmissions such as hydraulic transmissions including pumps and motors and conduits therebetween Further, the harvester has means for topping the standing beets 1 and after the topping means in sequence inclined pitchfork-like lifting means 2, cleaning and elevating meanS 3, and a container (not shown) for collecting dug-up and cleaned beets. The lifting means 2 has lifting arms 5 which diverge in the travelling direction of the harvester (indicated by the arrow 4 in FIG. I) can be set in motion in relation to the harvester, said arms 5 penetrating with their free ends 6 during operative propulsion of the harvester into the ground 7 and being advanced therein on either side of the row of standing beets l.

The lifting means 2is of the type in which the lifting arms 5 are spaced the smallest mutual distance apart at their free ends 6 which are directed rearwardly as viewed in the travelling direction 4 and from which the lifting arms diverge in relation to one another and to the travelling direction 4.

The beet harvester is of the type that includes means for guiding the dug-up beets 1 from the lifting means 2 to the cleaning and elevating means 3.

In accordance with the invention, the guide means comprise a pair of cleaning and elevating tines 8 which are located above the lifting arms 5 and thus between the lifting means 2 and the cleaning and elevating means 3, can be set in motion in relation to the harvester and diverge in the same direction as the lifting arms 5. The supply end of the cleaning and elevating means 3 is arranged adjacent to and slightly above the free ends 9 of the cleaning and elevating tines 8 (see FIG. 1). The arms 5 and the tines 8 can be supported in their conveying position (not shown in FIG. 1) in such a way as to be out of engagement with the ground 7. Also, part of the cleaning and elevating means 3 may be arranged to be moved towards and away from the operative position shown in FIG. 1. The arms 5 and the tines 8 diverge from their rearwardly directed free ends 6 and 9, resPectively, as viewed in the travelling direction 4, between which ends as already mentioned the arms 5 and the tines 8 are spaced the minimum mutual distance apart. The arms 5 and the tines 8 are substantially .of rectangular cross-section and taper towards their free ends 6 and 9, respectively.

The lifting arms 5 are secured in a vertically movable member 10 which is mounted on a shaft 11 which, for reasons that will appear from the following, is mounted in a laterally movable and swingable fastening 12 of the harvester by means of bearing bushes 13. As a result, the lifting arms 5 are mounted on the shaft 11 extending between said arms longitudinally thereof so as to be driven and thus swung to and fro about said shaft in pushpull, that is substantially up and down in relation to the grOund 7. Thus, when one arm 5 swings up in the direction of the arrow A (FIG. 4) the other arm 5 swings down in the direction of the arrow B. When said second arm swings up in the direction of the arrow A said first arm swings down in the direction of the arrow B. Since the free ends 6 of the arms 5 lie close to one another and close to the extended center line C (dashed and dotted in Fig; l) of the pivoting axis the free ends of the arms 5 will have imparted to them an insignificant up and down movement, while the other portions of the arms 5 will be given an up and down movement which is considerably greater in certain sections. Because of the insignificant movement of the free arm ends 6 no stones will jam between them. By their otherwise considerably stronger up and down movement the arms are able efficiently to dig up the beets l lifting them upwards into the largest space between the tines 8 which shake and further elevate the beets l during their passage towards the free ends 9 of the tines 8 until they are supplied to the entrance end of the cleaning and elevating means 3 which is located above the tines 8. The pronounced up and down movement of the Ne and impliesa time and cost-saving operation of the machine, free of anyinterruptions. The cross-member has a lug l3 to which an arm 14 is linked by means of a pivot 15. The other end of the arm 14 is linked by means of another pivot 15 to an annular member 16 for a crank or eccentric .17 secured to 'a drive shaft 18 of a gearbox -19which is drivably connected to the power transmission of the'machine by means of a drive shaft 21 having a universal joint 20. The gearbox 19 is provided with transmission means,(not shown) for driving the shaft 18 and further drive shafts to be described in the following, at suitable speeds.

The cleaning and elevating tines 8 are connected to a drive shaft 22 extending transversely of the tines and drivably connected to the gearbox l9. Said tines are journal 27. which is secured in, and projects from, a

fixed portion 27a of the harvester frame. As a result, the fastening 12- (cf. FIG. 3) is reciprocable longitudinally of the journal 27 and can also swing about it, whereby the'fastening 12 and thus the lifting arms 5 and the cleaning and elevating tines 8 by moving longitudinally of the journal 27 are able to adjust themselves to theindividual positions of the beets laterally in the row of'standing beets, andiby rotating about the journal 27' are able to swing'aside if the lifting arms engage solid objects in the ground during harvesting. The fastening 12 is mounted on the journal 27 by means of bearing bushes28 and a sleeve 29, and the journal 27 projects out of the ends of the sleeve 29. To prevent dirtying of the journal'27 and the bearing for the sleeve 29 thereon, bellows 30 of flexible material are disposed between the free end of the journal and the adjacent end of the sleeve and, respectively, between the fixed frame portion 270 and the adjacent sleeve end. The mounting sleeve 25 is connected by connecting means 31 to a hinge 32 by which the sleeve is connected to an annular member33 for an eccentric 24 secured to the drive shaft 22. During operative propulsion of the harvester the tines 8 are caused to effect a regular up and down movement in parallel, thereby lifting the beets l up to the entrance end of the cleaning and elevating means 3.

The fastening 12 is secured to the gearbox 19 and, as

will have appeared from the foregoing, the fastening i so as not to impede the adjusting movements the fastening 12 has a pair of slightly spaced apart lugs 36 between which penetrates. a lug 37 of a block 38 which is hinged to the lower ends of a pair of arms 39. At their upper ends said arms 39 are hinged to a block 40 which projects from abush 41 on a pivot 42 connected .to one end of a two-armed lever 43. This lever 43 is pivotally mounted on a shaft 44 of the harvester and has its other end pivoted to a spring-loaded or otherwise loaded piston 45 in a cylinder 46 pivoted at 47 to the harvester. One end of a leaf spring 48 is fixed in the bush 41 and the other end of the spring freely projects into the space between a pair of spaced pins 49 which ex-' tend between the arms 39. Ifthe lifting arms 5and the I tines 8 are forced out of their earlier positionsby a beet l the arms 39 will be actuated and swing in the cor,-

responding direction, whereby the spring- '48 is flexed.

I shaft 51 of said disks 50 are drivably connected in a manner not shown to the gear and ltrammission mechanism (not shown) of the gearbox 19. Some rows of pins 52 extending tangentially in relation to the disk are also mounted on the shaft 51. The disks 50 and the pins 52 serve to facilitate the transfer of the beets from the tines 8 to the cleaning and elevating means 3 and to this end rotate in the direction of the arrow53 in FIG. 1.

1 The cleaning and elevating means 3 comprises a number of rolls 54 which. are rotatable in the same direction and have pin-shaped cleaning and elevating means 55 of elastic material, such as rubber,projecting from the respective rolls. As'will appearfrom FIGS. 1

and 6 the means 55 have a number of annular-beads 56. I

free ends. which are directed towards the rear of the machine, cleaning and elevating means located rearwardly of said free ends of said lifting arms, and means for guiding the root crops lifted from the ground from said lifting means to the cleaning and elevating means,

I said guide means being located between said lifting means and said cleaning and elevating means and comprising a pair of guiding arms which vertically reciprocate above the ground and which converge at their free ends which are directed towards the rear of the machine. I

2. A root-crop harvester as claimed in claim 1 further comprising a drive shaft, atransmission connecting saidguiding arms with said drive shaft, and a control means for insuring that said guiding arms vertically reciprocate in opposite directions when said drive shaft Imam.

. 3. A root-crop harvester as claimed in claim 2 further comprising a shaft extending between said lifiing arms longitudinally thereof, and a cross-member pivotally the armsS and the tines What I claim and desire to secure by LettersPatent laterally in the longitudinal direction of said journal means, said lifting arms and said guiding arms being attached to said fastening member whereby said lifting arms and guiding arms are capable of both rotating about the longitudinal direction of said journal means and moving parallel to said direction. 

1. A root-crop harvester machine comprising lifting means having a pair of vertically reciprocating lifting arms which reciprocate in the ground for lifting root-crops out of the ground which arms converge at their free ends which are directed towards the rear of the machine, cleaning and elevating means located rearwardly of said free ends of said lifting arms, and means for guiding the root crops lifted from the ground from said lifting means to the cleaning and elevating means, said guide means being located between said lifting means and said cleaning and elevating means and comprising a pair of guiding arms which vertically reciprocate above the ground and which converge at their free ends which are directed towards the rear of the machine.
 2. A root-crop harvester as claimed in claim 1 further comprising a drive shaft, a transmission connecting said guiding arms with said drive shaft, and a control means for insuring that said guiding arms vertically reciprocate in opposite directions when said drive shaft rotates.
 3. A root-crop harvester as claimed in claim 2 further comprising a shaft extending between said lifting arms longitudinally thereof, and a cross-member pivotally mounted to said shaft at its center and mounted to said guiding arms at each end thereof.
 4. A root-crop harvester as claimed in claim 3 further including a longitudinal journal means disposed in a direction transverse to the direction of said lifting arms and said guiding arms to which a fastening member is attached so that said fastening member may both rotate around said longitudinal journal means and move laterally in the longitudinal direction of said journal means, said lifting arms and said guiding arms being attached to said fastening member whereby said lifting arms and guiding arms are capable of both rotating about the longitudinal direction of said journal means and moving parallel to said direction. 